Introduction to International Politics
Foreign Event Analysis
| Locale | ![[]](http://www.kvasaheim.com/flags/flag15-zw.png "Flag of Zimbabwe") | Zimbabwe |
|---|---|---|
| Title |
Zimbabwe’s “New Deal”
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| Summary |
On Monday 15, 2008 Robert Mugabe, president of Zimbabwe, signed a treaty with the opposition party’s leader, Morgan Tsvangirai. This treaty still kept Mugabe as president of Zimbabwe but also appointed Tsvangirai as the prime minister who will oversee a cabinet of ministers. These ministers will be divided between the three main political parties in Zimbabwe. This came after almost three decades of uninterrupted rule by Mugabe, who has had control over Zimbabwe since he helped lead the country in its war for liberation. Mugabe is charged with countless acts of human rights violations and has led his country’s economy into the ground, which resulted in an inflation rate in the millions. In the last election the results were disputed after Morgan Tsvangirai claimed victory but the Mugabe backed government challenged the results and set up a runoff election. At this point Morgan Tsvangirai backed out in fear of the repercussion that would befall his supporters after voting against Mugabe. The United States and the European Union look at this deal with their breaths held. The European Union has pledged economic support for Zimbabwe if their truly is a change. Zimbabweans looks at this deal with hope that it will finally bring stability, especially economic stability to their country.
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| Analysis |
This new treaty that will share power between Mugabe, Tsvangirai, and Arthur Mutambara, is Mugabe’s last effort to retain power. Mugabe has been feeling international pressure to show signs of being a democracy with fair elections. After the dispute over the last election the pressure has increased immensely. This deal was created out of necessity in order to retain his power. Though this deal does not give him total control anymore it keeps true power in his hands. This is because he still retains control over the military. With power over the military he retains power over his people and opposing parties. In addition, with creating some semblance of an agreement with the opposition party he has one less enemy. He is now able to focus his power on Western Powers that he believes should not interfere with African problems. This treaty allows him to gain more power domestically which allows him to focus on foreign powers.
The United States and the European Union also look at this deal with interest. Zimbabwe borders South Africa which is a very stable country in Sub-Sahara Africa. The United States and the European Union lose a strong ally if Zimbabwe fell into a civil war which spread to South Africa. These two international powers would lose an ability to spread their power in this region. However, if peace is able to spread in Zimbabwe and a strong democracy is formed then the United States and the European Union would gain a valuable ally in Sub-Sahara Africa. It would allow these two international powers to gain a sense of security in the region and also spread their power even more in this region. Another threat to them is the fact that Mugabe is very anti Western powers. If Mugabe lost his power especially his military power then the United States and the European Union would again gain security in the region. Yet, this agreement as it stands now still gives Mugabe power over the military so the United States and the European Union still have a threat in the region. The power struggle in this region is important to numerous world powers. | |
| Perspective |  | Realist |
| In-Region URL | ||
| Out-of-Region URL | ||
| Submitted | September 19, 2008 at 10:23 am | |
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